Springerle, the keeper of Christmas Memories.

I updated this post to include the printable recipe for Springerle. My apologies if you have received this twice today. Always a learning curve when learning new skills.

No other cookie is so evocative of Christmas memories than Springerle, just opening anise oil releases a multitude of Christmas ghosts. There was always Springerle at Christmas, money was always found for baking supplies, and the ingredients for this seemingly intricate cookie are very humble. I have been asked to share our tradition of Springerle and I do so happily, I don’t believe in keeping kitchen secrets, food is only fun if shared. But please, this is just one way of making Springerle, not the best way, not the way that

will provide you with picture perfect embossed ivory cookies, it is just the cookie we grew up with, everyone’s favorite eating cookie, anticipated all of December. It is the cookie that I can still see my mother’s hands mixing and cutting, she had the softest hands of anyone I ever knew, hands that could soothe a baby like none other, hands that could untangle the most intricate knots, hands that were busy her entire life doing good.

Springerle can be started right after Thanksgiving, they are a cookie that only gets better as it mellows in a cool place in cookie tins. Aged, they make the perfect dunking cookie, we grew up dunking anything we were eating in our coffee, it’s what we did. Fresh, they are airy and soft, intoxicating with anise aromas. Don’t fret about making the perfect cookie, you are making memories, and the memory will be perfect.

Springerle

(Adapted from the recipe found in my mother’s favorite cookie book, “The Christmas Cookie Book.” Out of print, but well worth stalking Amazon for a copy.

4  Large Eggs at room temperature.
2 Cups of sugar
3 to 3 1/2 Cups of All Purpose Flour
1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1/4 sea salt
2 Tablespoons of melted unsalted butter
1 Teaspoon of pure Anise Oil. You can substitute extract, but flavor will not be as intense.

Anise seed

In the bowl of your mixer start beating the eggs that you have brought up to room temperature. Cold eggs are cranky. Add the sugar slowly, this will take some patience, but just don’t dump two cups of sugar on top of your eggs. I have in the past tried all sorts of sugar to achieve the perfect cookie, superfine, confectioners, and have settled on just regular sugar, I always have it on hand and with proper mixing it dissolves just fine. You will want to beat the eggs and sugar until it is beautifully light and fluffy, could take as long as 10 minutes, under beating will give you a flat and hard cookie. Scrape the bowl down frequently, making sure to get down to the bottom of your bowl.

Measure one cup of flour, fluff and spoon flour into the measuring cup, please no scooping, you want your flour light and airy when measured. One can always add flour, once it is incorporated there is no getting it back out. To that one cup of flour, blend in your baking powder and salt.

You want to have your two tablespoons of unsalted butter melted and cooled, into the melted butter measure your one teaspoon of anise oil.

With your mixer on the lowest setting, blend in the one cup of flour that has the baking powder and salt into your wonderful fluffy egg and sugar mixture. Gently blend in a second cup of flour. Next add in your melted unsalted butter that also has your anise oil, take a second to just breathe in that wonderful scent. Continue to gently add the last cup of flour, keeping your mixer on low. Add the additional 1/2 cup of flour if needed. Stop your mixer once everything is barely incorporated, scrape down your beaters and hand mix everything until it is nicely blended. Place that lovely dough into an airtight container and throw it in the fridge to rest overnight. Refrigerating the dough allows everything to firm up and come together.

Your dough has chilled overnight, the cats are napping, take a few moments to prepare everything you will need beforehand. Baking sheets, parchment paper, chilled dough, pizza wheel cutter, unsalted butter stick, anise seed, ruler, Springerle rolling pin or board, pastry brush, sifted confectioner’s sugar, cutting board, and some nice calm music.

Prepare your first baking sheet with three strips of butter and sprinkle anise seed down each strip.

I prefer using a Springerle board, the designs of the rolling pin are the ones of my childhood, but I never mastered the pin, I prefer the board. For the size of my design board, I use 9 ounces of dough. I use confectioner’s sugar to liberally coat the cutting board and the the design board. I have used flour, I much prefer confectioner’s sugar for dusting. Pat or roll your dough to about 1/2″ thick, too thick and your cookies will be gargantuan, too thin you end up with hockey pucks.

And if your dough is cold enough, and you have been generous with dusting your mold, and the stars are aligned, this is what you will have when you gently peel off your mold.

Now repeat the process. Liberally brush your mold with confectioner’s sugar before each use. Dust your board, dust everything. And even with dusting everything with confectioner’s sugar, sometimes the dough will stick, it happens to everyone. Clean your mold or rolling pin, dust everything, dust your dough you have patted out, and try again. I throw my scraps right on the scale and add fresh dough on top to reach the desired weight.  I also keep the dough that I am not working with in the refrigerator, cold dough behaves better.

I usually get around 36 cookies from each batch, it all depends on the size of your cookie. Springerle need to sit for at least 12 hours before baking, can go as long as 24 hours. I usually let mine dry for 18 hours. The resting allows the design to set. We keep our house cold and I have the perfect room where the trays can be undisturbed. If you skip this step, you will lose your design. I do double batches and it ties up all of my baking sheets, so work this resting time into your cookie schedule. I use our mom’s cookie sheets for Springerle, they are close to sixty years old, she kept them spotless.

Your cookies have rested and you are ready to bake. Preheat your oven to 350. Bake at 350 for 5 minutes, then lower the temperature to 300 for 9 to 10 more minutes of baking.  I don’t fret about them getting a little brown, or puffy. I don’t take mine out halfway and bang them on the counter so the cookie falls and the design pops, I don’t take a clean cloth and press down the cookie after baking so the design is more forward. I just bake them until they are right. We like our Springerle soft on the inside, fragrant with anise, crisp on the outside, just lightly brown on the bottom. You will find your own way how you like them best.

You will always have some “scraps” left after the last cookie is molded, they were highly prized in our house. Mom would bake them off and fill the house with the scent of Christmas. Little tastes of Christmas joy. Springerle improve with age, or can be eaten fresh, wonderful with tea or coffee, pair nicely with wine, sometimes we would have little tiny glasses of Anisette to go with our Springerle on Christmas Eve.

I am including some pictures of our mom’s original book, she never thought a house complete without a Boxer or two, she loved her dogs, and they loved mom, and they loved eating her cookbooks. We did our fair share of writing in her books also, and we would each read this book from cover to cover every year as the author wove a magical tale of Christmas baking.

Don’t wait until next Christmas to try your hand at Springerle, they are wonderful any time of the year and the winter months are great months to experiment with new techniques and recipes. Nothing quite tastes like something you have created, there is something intangible that feeds the soul when it is baked with love.

Much peace to you and your house.

Springerle

 

Author: Terri Jackson

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Ingredients

• (Adapted from the recipe found in my mother's favorite cookie book, "The Christmas Cookie Book." Out of print, but well worth stalking Amazon for a copy.
• 4 Large Eggs at room temperature.
• 2 Cups of sugar
• 3 to 3½ Cups of All Purpose Flour
• 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
• ¼ sea salt
• 2 Tablespoons of melted unsalted butter
• 1 Teaspoon of pure Anise Oil. You can substitute extract, but flavor will not be as intense.
• Anise seed

Instructions

1. In the bowl of your mixer start beating the eggs that you have brought up to room temperature. Cold eggs are cranky. Add the sugar slowly, this will take some patience, but just don't dump two cups of sugar on top of your eggs.
2. I have in the past tried all sorts of sugar to achieve the perfect cookie, superfine, confectioners, and have settled on just regular sugar, I always have it on hand and with proper mixing it dissolves just fine.
3. You will want to beat the eggs and sugar until it is light and fluffy, could take as long as 10 minutes, under beating will give you a flat and hard cookie. Scrape the bowl down frequently, making sure to get down to the bottom of your bowl.
4. Measure one cup of flour, fluff and spoon flour into the measuring cup, please no scooping, you want your flour light and airy when measured. One can always add flour, once it is incorporated there is no getting it back out. To that one cup of flour, blend in your baking powder and salt.
5. You want to have your two tablespoons of unsalted butter melted and cooled, into the melted butter measure your one teaspoon of anise oil.
6. With your mixer on the lowest setting, blend in the one cup of flour that has the baking powder and salt into your wonderful fluffy egg and sugar mixture. Gently blend in a second cup of flour. Next add in your melted unsalted butter that also has your anise oil, take a second to just breathe in that wonderful scent. Continue to gently add the last cup of flour, keeping your mixer on low. Add the additional ½ flour if needed. Stop your mixer once everything is barely incorporated, scrape down your beaters and hand mix everything until it is nicely blended. Place that lovely dough into an airtight container and throw it in the fridge to rest overnight. Refrigerating the dough allows everything to firm up and come together.
7. Your dough has chilled overnight, the cats are napping, take a few moments to prepare everything you will need beforehand. Baking sheets, parchment paper, chilled dough, pizza wheel cutter, unsalted butter stick, anise seed, ruler, Springerle rolling pin or board, pastry brush, sifted confectioner's sugar, cutting board, and some nice calm music.
8. Prepare your first baking sheet with three strips of butter and sprinkle anise seed down each strip.
9. I prefer using a Springerle board, the designs of the rolling pin are the ones of my childhood, but I never mastered the pin, I prefer the board. For the size of my design board, I use 9 ounces of dough. I use confectioner's sugar to liberally coat the cutting board and the the design board. I have used flour, I much prefer confectioner's sugar for dusting. Pat or roll your dough to about ½" thick, too thick and your cookies will be gargantuan, too thin you end up with hockey pucks.
10. Liberally brush your mold or springerle pin with confectioner's sugar before each use. Dust your board, dust everything. And even with dusting everything with confectioner's sugar, sometimes the dough will stick, it happens to everyone. Clean your cookie mold or pin, dust everything, dust your dough you have patted out, and try again.
11. Press your cookie mold down firmly on your prepared dough. Apply even pressure. Gently peel the mold off your dough. Use a pizza wheel to cut the designs apart.
12. Place each cookie on your prepared cookie tray.
13. Refer to the pictures as a guide, a picture really is worth a thousand words.
14. I throw my scraps right on the scale and add fresh dough on top to reach the desired weight. I also keep the dough that I am not working with in the refrigerator, cold dough behaves better.
15. I usually get around 36 cookies from each batch, it all depends on the size of your cookie. Springerle need to sit for at least 12 hours before baking, can go as long as 24 hours. I usually let mine dry for 18 hours. The resting allows the design to set. We keep our house cold and I have the perfect room where the trays can be undisturbed. If you skip this step, you will lose your design. I do double batches and it ties up all of my baking sheets, so work this resting time into your cookie schedule.
16. Your cookies have rested and you are ready to bake. Preheat your oven to 350. Bake at 350 for 5 minutes, then lower the temperature to 300 for 9 to 10 more minutes of baking. I don't fret about them getting a little brown, or puffy. I don't take mine out halfway and bang them on the counter so the cookie falls and the design pops, I don't take a clean cloth and press down the cookie after baking so the design is more forward. I just bake them until they are right. We like our Springerle soft on the inside, fragrant with anise, crisp on the outside, just lightly brown on the bottom. You will find your own way how you like them best.

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